Childhood Memories
by Toothless801
Summary: What-if for Race to the Edge episode 1: Team Astrid. Instead of Stoick, what if Hiccup had been the one to find Astrid the night after the surprise attack on Berk? One-Shot


**Hey guys!**

 **First off, yes there are** (Or at least I _think_ there are **) some Race to the Edge spoilers in here, so yeah... Interpret as desired.**

 **Anyway, I was doing a Race to the Edge marathon (of sorts) yesterday 'cause I got sick and felt pretty rotten. As I watched all the episodes again, I have really enjoyed the episode Astrid's Team. I remember the scene where Stoick and Astrid have that talk after Astrid's old house has been destroyed. That got me thinking; what could have happened if Hiccup had found her instead? Of course I changed the scene up, but this is what I would have liked to see happen, but by no means did I not like Stoick talking with Astrid. I did enjoy that they had a bit of bonding. :) But since I'm completely sold-out on Hiccstrid, how could I not dream about the "What if?" I just had way too much inspiration to NOT write this, so here it is! :) Hope you enjoy!**

 **BTW, this picks up right during the sleepover scene before everyone goes to sleep.**

…

"Thanks guys," said Astrid, a slight, but sad smile playing on her face, "This is kinda nice."

From the opposite side of the fire, she saw Hiccup smile at her, before he settled in for the night beside his faithful dragon. The rest of the riders were also settling down for some shut eye. Astrid knew she should do the same, but she couldn't lie down. Thoughts of today's events plagued her mind, not letting her relax.

Her world had been shaken up, to say the least. When they had arrived back on Berk, Astrid had been told that her parent's house had been destroyed during the hit-and-run attack by Dagur. In that moment she had nearly had a heart attack, thinking her parent's might have been killed. But even when Gobber had assured her that her parent's were alive and well, that did little to calm the shock that still raged through her. She found it so ironic that something as simple as going to the yak races had saved her parent's lives. Astrid shuddered. She had been this close to losing her family, and she wasn't even aware that it had happened!

With her thoughts running wild, Astrid knew it was going to be impossible to sleep. She got up very quietly, careful not to disturb the others. She left the arena and began to wander aimlessly. It did feel good to be back on Berk, even under these circumstances. As she walked across the long wooden bridge that connected the arena with the main village, the cool night breeze swept softly over her. Astrid breathed it in with a sigh, and she started to feel a little more relaxed.

With a clear sky and the light of the moon to guide her, Astrid wandered through the silent village. Nighttime was the only time the village ever really slowed down, not to mention it was the only time you could get some peace and quiet. She sighed as she took in her tranquil surroundings, but stopped short as something caught her attention. Her feet had automatically taken her to her old house, or what was left of her old house. She stood in front of the wreckage of her childhood home, not really knowing what to do. Slowly stepping forward, Astrid began to rove around the charred remains of her house. Yes, her parent's were okay, but that still couldn't replace the fact that her house was gone. It had been filled with so many memories of growing up, both the happy and the sad times. Running her hand along a support beam that was still standing, Astrid recalled that this was the spot of her bedroom. How many times had she climbed these stairs as a little girl? She remembered her room vividly; it was very simple, which fit her personality. Even when she was young, Astrid was never the kind of child that needed to be spoiled. In fact, her parent's claimed that she blossomed better with less.

The few toys that she had as a girl were sturdy and well used. She remembered playing with her stick horse that she would ride all over the house while pretending to be the greatest viking shieldmaiden in the history of the Hooligan tribe. But that all ended when she tripped and broke the play horse. Astrid laughed quietly at the memory; she had fought the urge to cry fountains of tears, but instead she had buried the splintered wooden remains behind her house. But her father had noticed the toy was gone, and had carved her an even better one. She had always kept it, in memory of her childhood, but it was gone, along with everything else. Her first ax, the quilt from her grandmother, her old training equipment, and all that was left were the memories.

Astrid stopped as the glint of silver caught her eye. There was something in the rubble to her right. She climbed over the charred wood to the spot where she had seen the gleam of metal and knelt down while begining to dig. She lifted up the last piece of wood and gasped. There, lying on the ground in the burnt out remains of a box, sat a gleaming necklace. That was her necklace! She carefully lifted it out of the box. Surprisingly, it wasn't damaged one bit, and still shone in the moonlight. This was the family heirloom, passed down through the generations of Hofferson women. Her mother had passed it on to her when she was ten, when her mother announced that she was old enough to begin learning the ways of a woman. Astrid had taken it, but never wore it. As a little girl, she felt it was too girly, but as a teenager it always got in the way of her constant training. Astrid carefully examined it in her hands, rubbing off the dust and rubble that clung to it. The white silver chain reflected the light so beautifully, and the solitary oval green and aqua stone that hung from the chain was rare and exquisite. Astrid swallowed hard; this was the only thing she had left of her childhood. The rest was gone.

Standing up, Astrid clutched the necklace in one hand, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She had to leave this place before she broke down completely. Stepping over the rest of the wreckage, she left her house behind and headed for the cliffs overlooking the village.

…

Hiccup had always slept with "one eye open", so to speak. Growing up in a village with constant dragon raids during the night will do that to you. Even when blissfully away in dreamland, part of him was always alert should anything be amiss. But this time when he jerked awake, nothing at first glance seemed to be out of place. But as he looked over to the spot where Stormfly lay snoring, he realized that Astrid was gone. His heart skipped a beat. Where on earth could she be at this hour? Then it hit him. She had probably gone to see the remains of her old house. He got up, careful not to disturb the sleeping Toothless. He had to go find her.

By the time he reached the remains of her old house, Hiccup was fully wake and alert. But the minute he laid eyes on the charred remains, he saw she wasn't there. Now Hiccup was a little scared. What if she had gone off somewhere else? What if Dagur had doubled back, seen her, and captured her? No matter how insane the last option sounded, it still worried Hiccup. He looked around the bay, but saw nothing unusual. Glancing back to the cliffs, nothing caught his eye at first, but right as he went to look away, he spotted some movement. Them harder he looked at it, he could see a figure that looked an awful lot like Astrid. Hiccup turned for the cliffs and began his climb up.

…

Astrid sat on the cliffs, still holding the necklace in her hand. She thought that getting away from the house that brought back so many memories would help stop this...feeling. She had to stay strong and not let herself be shaken by this. All she had lost were inanimate objects, nothing important, right? Then why did she still feel this way? Why did she still feel an acute sense of loss? _Get a hold of yourself, Astrid!_ She yelled at herself mentally, but she couldn't stop the little voice inside her head that kept saying, " _You could have prevented it! You could have been her to stop it!"_ Hiding her face in her hands, Astrid shuddered. This internal battle was too much.

"Astrid?"

Her head shot up at the sound of someone calling her name. Hastily shaking herself back to reality, she turned around to see who it was. At the sight of Hiccup, she relaxed.

"Oh, it's just you," breathed Astrid, relived it wasn't anyone else.

"Just me? What's that supposed to mean?" he laughed quietly.

Astrid smiled slightly at this joke. Typical Hiccup, always lightening things up with a bit of sarcastic humor. He grinned back at her, then sat down next to her. Turning back to her, his face grew serious again. "Look," he began, "I was worried when I woke up and found you were gone."

Astrid looked away. "Yeah, sorry about that. I just..." she trailed off, not knowing what to say.

"It's about your parent's, isn't it?" asked Hiccup gently.

"It...well, yeah. Partly." she sighed heavily before continuing. "I can't shake off the thought of what I could have done to stop it. Hiccup, the only reason my parents are still here is because they decided to go to the yak races!"

Her voice cracked a little during the last sentence, and Hiccup's heart ached when he heard it. He reached over and took her hand in his, squeezing is reassuringly.

"Astrid, you can't blame yourself for this. You didn't know that Dagur would launch an attack on Berk, and you couldn't have known that your house would be destroyed."

Astrid closed her eyes, as if shaking off some dark feeling. "I know that, but I still feel responsible for it all. It's not just the fact that I came close to losing my parents. Hiccup, I lost my childhood home, and everything in it that I grew up with." She opened her free hand to reveal the necklace she had recovered. "This is the only thing that was left. The heirloom necklace that has been passed down throughout countless generations."

Hiccup stared at the necklace with awe. It was beautifully made, yet so simple. _That fits Astrid so well,_ he thought. He reached out his hand, then stopped. "May I?" he asked. Without a word, Astrid handed him the necklace. He fingered it in one hand, then released Astrid's to hold up the necklace to see how it would look on her. After making a few exaggerated facial expressions while judging the look, he handed it back to Astrid. "It's perfect," he said. "You should wear it sometime."

Astrid wrinkled her face at the thought, then softened. "Maybe the next time something special comes up." Then she grew serious again. "But every time I look at it, it reminds me of the need to protect my family, and the fact that I failed to do that very thing!"

"No, Astrid, don't start that again." Hiccup interrupted. "You didn't fail anything. You can't expect yourself to be prepared for everything that gets thrown your way."

She sighed again. "I guess not." She looked up at Hiccup, her blue eyes meeting his green ones "But it's still hard to accept that."

Hiccup nodded. "It's not easy, but you're own the right track, Astrid." He smiled gently at her as she yawned. "Come on, you need to get some sleep."

"But-"

"No if's, and's, or but's, milady. I'll pick you up and carry you to the arena, then make Toothless sit on you if I have to!"

"Wait, what?"

"You heard me."

Astrid laughed, already feeling a bit better. But then she yawned again. "Yeah, I guess I am pretty tired."

"Let's go, then." said Hiccup as he stood up. He held out his hand to Astrid, who looked at it for a second, smiled, then took a hold of it while he helped her stand up. _Always a gentleman,_ Astrid thought to herself. As she stood there, she looked out over the cliffs, taking in the beautiful, moonlit ocean. Momentarily absorbed in the scene, she failed to notice that Hiccup had started back to the arena. He had only gotten a few feet before he turned around. "Hey, are you coming?"

"Yeah," she answered after a moment. Taking her eyes off the ocean, she turned to catch up with him. "Hiccup?" she asked as she joined up with him.

"Yes?" he replied as he turned back to face her.

"Thank you," she whispered, throwing her arms around him, "Thank you so much," Her voice cracked again, and Hiccup knew what that crack meant.

"Astrid," he whispered back as he returned the hug, "Even the strong have times of grief. Remember, you're allowed to cry."

That broke the last straw of Astrid's resolve to block out her grief. Her tears came fast. She had been fighting them all day, but she no longer had the strength to hold it back. To Hiccup, the moment was heart wrenching. It hurt to see her in so much pain. He tightened his arms around her, knowing that she needed that reassurance right now.

Slowly, her tears stopped, and Astrid felt much better. Until she suddenly realized that she had cried in front of someone. A bit embarrassed, Astrid pulled back. "Hiccup, I...I'm sorry you had to...see that," she mumbled, not able to meet his gaze.

"Hey," Hiccup said softly, "It's okay, that's what I'm here for." He smiled, and she looked back up at him. She returned the smile with gratitude.

"Thanks," she whispered.


End file.
